The victim told police that Johnson had put his hands down her pants and that she had performed oral sex on him. Johnson had been found guilty of digitally penetrating the child but was cleared of the oral sex charge. The Judge Jonathan Rose told him he had abused his position and caused the victim “severe psychological harm.”

It is now known that Johnson has a “compulsive attitude towards engaging in sexual activity.” A doctor’s report read in court quoted him as saying:

“Being in prison would offer some relief. I just want to let people I have hurt get on with their lives.”

Adam Johnson began his career at Middlesbrough before moving to Manchester City and then to Sunderland. His partner, Stacey Flounders, with whom he has a one-year-old daughter, was not present in court and apparently no longer in a relationship with him.